Hand-fan and process of making.



ND PROCESS 0F MAKING.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. B. 1915.

HAND FAN A Patented 0ct.10,1916.

MALVIN LIGHTER,

OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

HAND-FAN AND PROCESS 0F MAKING.

Application filed October the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Im-v provements in Hand-Fans and Processes of Making, of which the following is a specifcation.

This invention relates to improvements in hand fans of common type and particularly to those constructed chiefly of cardboard throughout. In such fans, the handles, particularly at the stem or neck adjoining the blade, are of necessity relatively weak, renderino` it compulsory to pro-vide some means o stiffening or reinforcement which is usually applied to the exterior, thereby increasing the cost of production, by both the labor and the material involved and often disfiguring the fan by unsightly additions to the handle.

It is therefore the principalobject of this invention to provide a stiifening device, readily applicable, during the process of manufacture, to the handle and extending into the blade, that shall adequately supply the necessary rigidity, and yet have a desirable resilience, witho-ut detriment to the general appearance and without material increase to the manufacturing cost.

A further object is to produce fans that may be imprinted, embossed or otherwise embellished, the entire structure being substantially fiat, and so cheaply constructed that they may be used for advertising purposes, at the same time giving all the satisfaction that a higher priced fan can give with respect to its special function.

These and other objects are attained by the novel construction hereinafter described and shown in the accompanying drawings, forming a material part of this specification, and in which Figure 1 is a front view of a fan made in accordance with the invention; Fig. 2 is a cross sectional view of the handle, indicating one of the processes of manufacture; Fig. 3 is a similar cross section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a stiffener in its blank form. Fig. 5 is a fragmental view of the handle; Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 5, and Fig. 7 is a plan view of a preferred form of stiffener in its blank form.

The blade 10 of the fan may be of any preferred outline, as semi-arcuate or circu Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 1), 1916.

8, 1915. Serial No. 54,893.

lar as shown, and has integrally formed with it, from the same plate or sheet of material, the handle 11, cut to suit the plan oi the hand and joined to the blade by the reduced neck or stem 12. The material used for the fan is fibrous in its nature, made of paper pulp, as is common in cardboard of the kind used. In the extreme outer end of the handle and central between the flat sides is inserted a needle having a wedge shaped end that causes the fibers to separate as the needle is advanced, thereby forming. a passage 14 extending into the blade as far as may be desired (see Fig. 2). It is to be understood that this passage is open at the end of the handle only and is adapted to receive a stiffening rod 15, preferably made of resilient metal, after which pressure may be applied to the sides of the fan, bringing the fibers into intimate contact with the rod, which may be entered beyond the edge so as to be completely inclosed in the fan material. |The resilient stiffener will all w a certain amount of bending of the fan, in ordinary use, yet will give the otherwise flexible and weak material the required stiffness and reinforcement to render it suitable for use and to prevent breakage. A modification of th-e foregoing is shown in Figs. 5 to 7, in which a relatively thin, fiat stiffener 20 is inserted in a slit, rather than a rectangular passage as before, and the structure then pressed between dies shaped to form a central corru'gation or ridge 21 in the fan material and stiliener at one operation, condensing the fibers and securing the strip firmly in position. It is to be noted that the ridge 21 gives additional strength to resist lateral flexure and that the ridge need not be high in order to accomplish its full purpose; obviously more than one ridge may be made if desired and also, instead of extending longitudinally to the stiifening strip, the ridges may be disposed diagonally or in a divergent manner, in so called herring bone disposition. It is not desired therefore to be limited to the exact construction shown, as modifications, variations and adaptations may be made within the scope of the claims hereto appended.

Having thus described my invention together with its application and use, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A hand fan cut from a single sheet of material and comprising a stiening element extending through the handle thereof into the blade, said stiffening element being isposed and wholly concealed within the 2. The process of stiffening a fan by piercing the handle longitudinally, centrally between the feces, inserting aresilient stiHener and condensing the fibers upon l0 seid stiffener.

3. The process of stifi'ening a card board fan or the like, consisting of forcing apart the fibers, inserting a stiii'ening strip and pressing between dies whereby one or more oorrugations are formed in the material including the stiffening strip.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

MALViN LIGHTER.

Copies of this patent may be 'obtained for :tive cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

' Washington, D. c. 

